HAEDY PLANTS AND SHRUBS. 43 



hardy shrubs aud plants — one of the most attractive ways in 

 which they can be used. Such a border will vary of course in 

 size, shape, and formation, with the requirements of individual 

 places aud must be designed to -suit them, but let us suppose a lot 

 of one hundred and fifty feet frontage, and two hundred feet 

 depth, with an eastern exposure. The house is placed midway in 

 the lot and only far enough away from the northern boundary to 

 permit of a screen of planting. It is common to place the house 

 as nearly in the centre of the lot as possible, but a mistake, for such 

 a, location reduces the size of the lawn aud the gardening possibil- 

 ities greatly. We would occupy the entire southern aud western 

 boundaries of the lot, and perhaps a portion of the eastern, with the 

 border, which should vary in width from five or six feet up to 

 twenty feet, with a curved outline on the lawn. This border 

 should be planted principally with shrubs arranged in groups, but 

 a few trees such as Birches, Magnolias, and Judas trees should 

 be used, and a few evergreens, such as Retinosporas and quite a 

 number of evergreen shrubs. AVhere a great variety of hardy 

 plants is desired the entire margin of this border might be filled 

 Tvith them, but a more effective arrangement is to plant them in 

 bold groups, one variety in a group, and alternating them with 

 ■groups of shrubs. Some of the stronger growing plants such as 

 Sunflowers, Foxgloves, and single Hollyhocks might be placed in 

 the middle or back part of the border, and the Japanese lilies, — 

 Auratum, Rubrum, and Album, — and our American species, 

 Siiperbum, can always be planted in, and combined to advantage 

 with, groups of rhododendrons and azaleas. After such a border 

 is completely planted with shrubs and hardy plants there will be 

 many opportunities for introducing colonies of spring flowering 

 bulbs, — Tulips, Narcissuses, etc. — aud the advantage of using 

 bulbs in this way is that the planting is peroianent aud they are 

 really more effective than in formal shaped beds cut out of the 

 lawn. It is the intention to keep this border in a cultivated con- 

 dition, free from weeds and grass, aud to give an annual mulch- 

 ing of manure. A lot of this size, planted so densely on its 

 boundary, should have its lawn kept quite free and open and have 

 only a few choice specimens planted on it and no large trees, 

 •except street trees on the edge of the sidewalk. 



I do not claim that this is the most artistic arrangement that can 

 be made for a small suburban place. I have in miud a most 



